Guide to the Presidents Cup

While the Ryder Cup has been around for decades, the Presidents Cup (October 8-11) started just over 20 years ago. But it’s starting to gain traction as golf becomes globally supported, especially in Asian countries. This year is the first event to be held in Asia with the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea in Incheon, South Korea, playing host.

The history

The competition format is similar to that of the Ryder Cup - although this is played by a US team and a team of players from across the globe, excluding Europeans.

Unlike most golfing competitions, this one doesn’t come with any prize money – at least not for the players. It’s all done in the name of charity, which gives the event a friendly, laid-back nature. Any funds raised are given to various charities nominated by the players. Over the course of the first 9 Cups, it has raised a massive £17 million.

While there may be no prize money, there’s still a trophy to be won. The massive 28-pound trophy was designed by Tiffany & Company. It takes 80 hours of labour to create and is built from sterling silver covered in 24-carat gold.

The competition has been held every other year since 1994. Originally held on odd-numbered years, after the Ryder Cup was cancelled following the September 11 attacks the competition was pushed back a year. It is now held on odd years, alternating between the US and an international host country. Past hosts have included Australia, South Africa and Canada.
 

How is it played?

The Cup is a match play event, with 12 players per side along with a non-playing captain. The US is made up from the 10 players who earned the most official FedEx Cup points, while the International team is the top 10 from the Official World Golf Rankings. Each team also gets two picks from the captain.

Over the first two days, there are 5 four-ball (two teams of two golfers competing against each other with their own ball) and 5 foursome (teams of two using one ball per team and taking alternate shots) matches. On the Saturday there are another 4 four-ball and 4 foursome matches. The captains pick the pairings for their side. On Sunday are the single sessions – one against one.

Every player has to take part in at least two of the first four sessions, while everyone has to take part in the Sunday singles session. Any games that are all-square after 18 holes are determined to be a draw, with each team receiving a half point.

A win in any of the events is worth one point – the winning team is simply the one with the most points once all the events are finished.
 

Why it’s important

Golf is growing rapidly across the globe and moving away from its Europe/US focus, thanks in part to events like this. R&A figures show that Asia is now home to over 4,700 golf courses. In fact, it has dozens of new courses under construction with another 112 in planning. This accounts for nearly 1 in 3 of all new golf projects.

It can also boost a local economy. When it was held in Ohio in 2013, it brought $22 million to the state with attendance north of 150,000, Forbes reported. This was a 67% increase from the 2009 tournament, showing how much golf’s stock has risen in recent years.

This year’s event

Things are changing this year as the format has been adapted. In the past, teams were working towards a 34 points total, where the first team to 17.5 points won. This has been reduced to 30 points, so teams need 15.5 points to win.